Here’s why local PSU fans might not be able to watch the first game on TV

Penn State and college football fans can breath a sigh of relief, Comcast and the Big Ten Network have come to an agreement. Comcast will continue to carry BTN and Big Ten games on FS1 this season.
Gene J. Puskar
AP, file

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The 10-year contract between the Philadelphia-based cable giant and Fox-owned Big Ten sports channel is set to expire Aug. 31, and without a deal, Comcast will drop the network — jeopardizing the ability for Comcast subscribers to watch the Big Ten Network, as well as Big Ten games broadcasted on Fox Sports 1.

“Comcast’s agreements with content providers, like the Big Ten Network, expire from time to time,” Comcast said in a statement to the Centre Daily Times on Tuesday. “We are communicating with the Big Ten Network about continuing to carry it after Aug. 31 and look forward to productive negotiations.”

The Big Ten Network declined to issue a further statement about the state of the negotiations, but President Mark Silverman was vocal about the situation at Big Ten Football Media Days in Chicago in July.

ICYMI – Yesterday, Fox Sports National Networks & BTN President Mark Silverman discussed the possibility that Comcast may drop Big Ten games on BTN and FS1.

“BTN and FS1 have made proposals to Comcast dating back to February and we’ve had no substantive response at all,” Silverman said to a room full of reporters. “As a result, we believe BTN and those Big Ten games that air on FS1 are in danger of not being aired on Comcast this coming season. So, we’re letting people know to alert Comcast subscribers of this real possibility that they could lose these games.”

“We love Big Ten football as much as the fans and feel a responsibility to alert Comcast subscribers of the real possibility that they may lose BTN and Big Ten football games on FS1,” a statement on the website from BTN and FS1 reads.

That move, Silverman said, was “just the first step in Comcast’s plan to remove BTN from their markets everywhere, including the Big Ten home markets.”

If Comcast does drop BTN, there are other options for college sports fans. Most Centre County residents, according to BTN’s website, can view the Big Ten Network via Windstream, DirecTV, DirecTV Now, Dish Network, FUBO TV, HULU Live and Playstation Vue.

The Penn State football team is utilizing a running-back-by-committee approach during the 2019 season. The running backs led the way against Pittsburgh with over 150 rushing yards in the team’s 17-10 win over its cross-state rival.